Clamp for wire-stretchers.



J. W. URIE. CLAMP FOR WIRE STRETGHBRS.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 18, 1914.

Patented Mar. 16, 1915.

NORRIS PETERS CO. PHD

TO-Ll1H0.. WASHINGTON. D. c.

JAMES W. URIE, OF CARSON CITY, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOB-v 0F ONEJZALF T0 HERBERT BRAIL, OF CARSON CITY, MICHIGAN.

CLAMP FOR WIRE-STRETCHERS.

Application filed June 18, 1914.

To all whom it may concern:

lle it known that 1, Jenna W Unrn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Carson City, in the county of lvlontcalm and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clamps for YVire-Stretchers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to wire stretching, and more particularly to stretching woven wire fencing, and its object is the provision of a clamp simple in construction and in operation, inexpensive to manufacture and strong and durable and readily adaptable to wire fabrics of different sizes of mesh, as will fully appear in the following description and the accompanying drawings in which like reference numerals designate corresponding parts in the several views.

Figure 1 is a top plan view of my invention, Fig. 2 is a side view, Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view showing transverse bolts connecting the bottom bar with the brackets, and eyes or lugs for attaching the pulling or stretching power, and Fig. 4e is an enlarged cross-section on the line of Fig. 1.

In Fig. 1 l have shown my device gripping a portion of woven wire fencing, between two clamping bars, ready for applying the draft means employed for stretching the wire as desired. It comprises a relatively fixed bar 1, a movable bar 2, movable brackets 3, transverse bolts l securing the brackets 3 to the fixed bar 1, operating bolts 5, and eyes or pulling lugs 6.

The fixed bar 1 has upturned flanges 7 which form a channel 8 somewhat broader than the breadth of the movable bar 2 to permit of the movable bar 2 crimping the wire over the flanges 7 into the channel 8 as shown in the drawings. The side edges of the bar 2 are rounded as shown, 9, to prevent cutting the crimped wire as it would be apt to do if these edges were not rounded.

The brackets 3 have shoulders 10 on their inner sides for engaging the flanges 7 of bar 1 when it is secured in position by the transverse threaded bolts 4: which pass through and clamp the ends of the brackets 3 to the side edges of bar 1. There are two of these transverse threaded bolts 4 to each bracket as shown in the drawings and they are secured in place by threaded nuts and have their heads in opposite directions Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 16, 1915..

Serial No. 845,885.

whereby the nuts are automatically locked against each other and prevented from working loose. These brackets 3 are of any hard metal preferably malleable steel, and in the upper portion of each is an opening aperture 11 having a smooth interior and its lower portion enlarged and adapted to receive a removable bur 12 with a threaded opening 13, the purpose of which is to carry the bolt 5 which is COI'lTeSPOllCllllglY threaded and which forces the bar 2 down upon the wire between it and bar 1 and maintains the grip thus formed during the process of stretching the wire. My object in mounting the bur 12 in the aperture 11 is to permit of its replacement when the thread becomes worn from the strain of carrying the bolt 5, and thereby save the bracket 3 which although otherwise practicall indestructible would have to be discarded when the thread became worn if the aperture was simply threaded bore, whereby the use of my removable bur the brackets may be used indefinitely.

The operating bolts 5 have tapered inner ends 1% for engaging the bar 2 and are provided at their outer ends with heads adapted to be readily engaged by any ordinary wrench in the operation of clamping the Wire.

Eyes or lugs 6 are rigidly secured to the underside of bar 1 for draft connection, and are so disposed as to each other and the length of the bar 1 as to insure an equal pull the full length of the clamp and thereby distribute the strain on the wires evenly over the fabric. This arrangement of the lugs has the additional purpose of permitting either the upper or the lower line wires being stretched independently of each other where the fabric has become twisted or the stay wires are out of line or off of the perpendicular, or where the fabric being of small mesh at the bottom and of large mesh at the top should have less force or pull applied to the top than to the bottom.

In Fig. 1 the wire is shown of the same size mesh throughout and the brackets equidistant apart, but by virtue of the novel construction of my brackets and the means employed in securing them to the bottom bar, my clamp can be applied to any mesh or style of woven wire, as for instance if the wire fabric is small mesh in its lower portion and large mesh in its upper portion it ed longitudinally Within the limits of'the 'mesh. ,7

Having thus described my invention What I claim is:

l. In a ire clamp, tWo Wire clamping bars, one of said bars having a channel in its upper surface and the other of said bars having a rounded lower face complementary to said channel, one piece brackets removably secured to said channeled bar by shoulders on their inner sides and transverse bolts on the underside of said channeled bar, and having smooth bored apertures in their upper portion, threaded burs in said apertures and bolts mounted in said burs in said apertures for adjusting the movable bar and maintaining it in a clamping position. 7

2. A device of the class described comprising a pair of complementary clamping I bars consisting of a fixed bar and a movable bar said fixed bar havin a channel with beveled sides runningits entire length, the other bar being adapted to fit into said channel for crimping or clamping the wire, one piece clamping brackets removably attached to said fixed bar by transverse bolts, said bolts passing through said brackets and under said fixed bar, an operating screw projecting through said clamping brackets I 1 and operatively engaging the upper surface of the other bar, a removable bur mounted in each of said clamping brackets, said bur having threads for engaging the operating screws, and eye loops rigidly attached to.

the opposite ends of the fiat side of the fixed clamping bar for the attachment of a separate suitable source of power to each.

3. A clamp for stretching Wire comprising a relatively fixed bar, a movable bar, movable brackets, transverse bolts securing the brackets to the fixed bar, operating bolts for adjusting said movable bar and maintaining said bars in operative relation, and

lugs rigidly secured to said fixed bar; said fixed bar having upturned flanges lorming a longitudinal channel, said movable bar being of lesser Width than the said channel and mounted Within said brackets above said fixed bar, said brackets being Ushape and having an aperture in their central portions, shoulders adjacent their free ends to engage the fianges'on said fixed bar and secured to said fixed bar by bolts secured in their free ends beneath and transverse of said fixed bar, said bolts being disposed With their heads in opposite directions and secured to the brackets: by nuts locked against displacement by'suchr reverse disposition of the bolts, said openings having smooth in teriors and enlarged in their loWer portion, a bur having a screw-threaded opening mounted vin said enlarged portion of said first named opening bclts threaded to engage the threads in said burs extending through said openings and adapted on their 7 inner ends to contact with the upper surface of the movable bar.

In testimony whereof I hereto signature in the presence of lIWQWltIlGSSBS.

7 JAMES W. URIE.

Witnesses FRED GUNTHER, Jr.,

FRED SNYDER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents 7 Washington, D. G.

affix my 

